Wednesday, January 22, 2014

Veteran infielder-outfielder Chone Figgins, looking to revive his career after a disappointing tenure in Seattle and a one-year baseball hiatus in 2013, has reached agreement on a minor league contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers, a baseball source told ESPN.com.The deal includes an invitation to the team's major league spring training camp, where Figgins is expected to compete for a spot on manager Don Mattingly's roster as a utility man.Figgins, 36, is a .277 hitter with 337 stolen bases in the majors. After making the American League All-Star team and finishing 10th in MVP balloting with the Los Angeles Angels in 2009, he signed a four-year, guaranteed $36 million deal with the Seattle Mariners with a vesting option for a fifth year.But Figgins struggled badly in Seattle, hitting .188 and .181 in back-to-back seasons, and the Mariners released him in November 2012. Figgins hooked on with the Miami Marlins, but they released him last March and he sat out the entire 2013 season.Figgins recently held an open tryout in Tampa that was attended by scouts from about 10 clubs. He ran the 60-yard dash in a fleet 6.5 seconds and showed enough with his bat and glove to prompt the Dodgers to offer him a minor league deal.

Probably worth a flyer for Chone. He dropped off the face of the earth after his Seattle move, but at one point he was a tiny force to be reckoned with. He could provide the 2014 squad with some speed off the bench, some what was once Gold Glove defense at multiple positions, and, most importantly, compete with Dee Gordon for team lead Mini Sirloin Burger.